Super Amazing One Reversal Go!

[The Sad Punk]

A truly remarkable thing happened recently, a thing that will create ire in few, and cause mutterances of "about time" for others.

Y'see, I was listening to AB recently for the first time in some moons while driving, and as track 3 began to start, I found myself slowly becoming stuck in a kind of traffic jam. I didn't skip it, as I was once prone to do, but instead let my mind be lathered by that melted butter guitar, to be stung by those familiar words. And, this time, it finally hit me. I had been much too hard on One. The whole time I've owned this album, I've treated One like some strange looking bloke who just wanted to give me a hug, and time and time again I juked out of his way and called him a weirdo. But he never wanted to hurt me. One just wanted to embrace my feelings and hug my soul. In this scenario reminiscent of the Everybody Hurts video clip, I reflected and discovered I didn't hate this song at all. I have grown into it. I understand.

I opened the door, kicked Michael Stipe off the roof of my car, and apologised to the gods for my distrust of a song that was never as bad as I thought it was, that I had treated it as what it had become rather than what it once was. I understand. I now like One.

Has this ever happened to you?

 

[bono_212]

Yep

 

[cobl04]

 

[Axver]

Noooooooooo!

 

[Vlad n U 2]

I hate those moments when there's a traffic jam and you find Michael Stipe on the roof of your car. Glad I'm not the only one to fall victim to that.

 

[cobl04]

Noooooooooo!

Fuck you.

 

[The Sad Punk]

It's like I'm a Stonecutter now or something.

 

[Axver]

I'm pretty sure this is actually cause to give you the Stone of Shame.

 

[doctorwho]

A truly remarkable thing happened recently, a thing that will create ire in few, and cause mutterances of "about time" for others.

Y'see, I was listening to AB recently for the first time in some moons while driving, and as track 3 began to start, I found myself slowly becoming stuck in a kind of traffic jam. I didn't skip it, as I was once prone to do, but instead let my mind be lathered by that melted butter guitar, to be stung by those familiar words. And, this time, it finally hit me. I had been much too hard on One. The whole time I've owned this album, I've treated One like some strange looking bloke who just wanted to give me a hug, and time and time again I juked out of his way and called him a weirdo. But he never wanted to hurt me. One just wanted to embrace my feelings and hug my soul. In this scenario reminiscent of the Everybody Hurts video clip, I reflected and discovered I didn't hate this song at all. I have grown into it. I understand.

I opened the door, kicked Michael Stipe off the roof of my car, and apologised to the gods for my distrust of a song that was never as bad as I thought it was, that I had treated it as what it had become rather than what it once was. I understand. I now like One.

Has this ever happened to you?

While it didn't take me 20+ years after the album's release to realize this, it did take a while and I fully get what you're saying.

When AB first was released, "One" seemed to be "in the way" of all the other good songs. This is especially true of the first 4 tracks, where "One" just spoiled the mood. It was a bit equivalent to "Bullet the Blue Sky" ruining the great mood created by the first three tracks on JT.

In retrospect, perhaps U2 intentionally did both. One of my complaints about JT is that many of the songs just melt together. "Bullet" mixes that up - and in a big way. Likewise, "One" pulls people out of whatever rhythm they were in. And like "Bullet", it took quite a few listenings to "One" to enjoy.

Both songs had the advantage of sounding absolutely great in concert. I adored the "Hear me knocking" coda added to "One" in the live performances. That really made the song shine.

Still, during AB's hey day, I more or less tolerated the song. I enjoyed it because it was U2 and I was happy they had a top 10 hit with it. But I never liked it as much as other U2 songs.

Then, perhaps 5 years after the album was released, I started listening again. And I REALLY loved it. One friend even asked me why I suddenly enjoyed the song so much (perhaps wondering if there was some "break up" or some family problem). No, none of that occurred - it was that I suddenly appreciated the song on a new level. To this day, I feel it has some of Bono's best lyrics - perhaps his best ever.

I know Axver hates the song. I never went that far. But I can see why some might not like it at first. It can be a grower.

Of course, now it's basically U2's theme song, so being over-played has hurt it again. And I'll ignore what Blige did to the song.

 

[gvox]

I've been fooled by threads like this before and laid naked my deepest feelings for a U2 song, only to have the hand pulled back, the inevitable derisive laughter echo between these blue walls, and my empathy rejected with a callous "haha, I was just joking"

Therefore, no more - NO MORE! I shan't be lured in by this latest ruse, Sad Punk.

And if this is not a trick, may you weep for the death of my innocent heart..

 

[Nick66]

I recognised the genius of "One" the first time I heard it. And it impacted me the first time I heard it.

While its power has wained for me over the years (through no fault of the song itself), the right live version can bring me straight back into it.

You don't need an academic or a conference to explain the power of U2's music to you...you just need to listen with an open heart.

 

[martha]

So Cruel does this to me every time. It starts, and I think "slow, almost mawkish" then BAM! I keep listening and get sucked into the drama, the love and the lust, and I just go with it, loving every second of it.

You'd think I'd remember, but no. Every time it starts, I think "Will I skip it this time?" Then I let it play for three more seconds, and BAM! Every single time.

 

[lazarus]

I've always loved every song on this album. From the first listen to my most recent.

 

[digitize]

I recognised the genius of "One" the first time I heard it. And it impacted me the first time I heard it.

While its power has wained for me over the years (through no fault of the song itself), the right live version can bring me straight back into it.

You don't need an academic or a conference to explain the power of U2's music to you...you just need to listen with an open heart.

Amen.

 

[dan_smee]

I have never been One's biggest advocate, I find it a pleasant song, but far from their best.

However, Bono's delivery, emotion and sentiment in -

"Love is a temple, Love a higher law, Love is a temple, Love the higher law, You ask me to enter, Then you make me crawl, And I can't be holding on to what you've got, When all you've got is hurt"

- is the finest moment in any U2 song.

 

[cobl04]

At first I wasn't sold on it either. Took me a while. It was probably watching Slane that won me over. That "do you hear me coming lord" part takes it into the stratosphere. Kills me I've seen them four times and never got that part.

I think Axver is on record as saying there's a live version of One that made him cry, as much of a shock that may be to some of you.

 

[lazarus]

That "do you hear me coming lord" part takes it into the stratosphere. Kills me I've seen them four times and never got that part.

Sucks to be you. I feel like I've heard that live like half out of the 15 or so times I've seen them.

 

[digitize]

I think Axver is on record as saying there's a live version of One that made him cry, as much of a shock that may be to some of you.

Was it that performance when Bono snippeted OTH at the beginning, when Ax realized that it was just a snippet?

 

[digitize]

Sucks to be you. I feel like I've heard that live like half out of the 15 or so times I've seen them.

I've gotten it once out of the two shows that I saw. The show I didn't see it at was the only show on the entire U2 360 2009 North American leg without the snippet (Chicago 1), I believe. Still, I felt really lucky to get to hear it once.

 

[Rachel D.]

For me, One suffers from the same condition as a lot of U2's most popular songs: they get overplayed so much that I stop seeing the genius of the song and get to the point where I'm never in the mood to hear it yet again. But once in a while, usually if one of these songs comes on the radio, I take the time to really listen and appreciate it all over again, and I "get" it. I love those moments of an unexpected U2 song for that reason.

 

[The Panther]

For me, One suffers from the same condition as a lot of U2's most popular songs: they get overplayed so much that I stop seeing the genius of the song and get to the point where I'm never in the mood to hear it yet again.

Maybe this depends on where you live, but I don't think I've ever heard 'One' on the radio -- like, in my life.

Of course, I don't listen to the radio, so there's that. But I do hear radio often in restaurants, other people's cars, out on the street, etc., and in the 21 years since the song appeared I've never heard it in those places. I have heard 'Pride', 'With or Without You', 'Beautiful Day', and (most of all) 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For' numerous times, but never 'One'.

There seems to be this perception on this forum that 'One' was a huge hit on the pop charts, but it wasn't really. The single reached #10 in the USA and #7 in Britain. This means it was a very popular single, but it wasn't nearly as welcomed by the mainstream as the aforementioned songs. When compared to another 3rd single, 'One' failed to do as well in Britain as 'When Love Comes to Town' on the pop charts. Likewise, its chart peak in the United States was no better than, say, 'Discotheque'.

Of course, in the years since the single/EP was issued, the song has been played to death by U2 and has taken on an elevated status in rock culture.

(Still, I fail to understand why people on this forum continue to beat it up, but turn a blind eye to songs like 'Streets' which have been played even more often -- and, I would argue, more badly -- than 'One'.)

 

[Globo14]

I tend to hear One more on satellite radio, but I have heard it on FM radio a handful of times.

 

[gvox]

Maybe this depends on where you live, but I don't think I've ever heard 'One' on the radio -- like, in my life.

Of course, I don't listen to the radio, so there's that. But I do hear radio often in restaurants, other people's cars, out on the street, etc., and in the 21 years since the song appeared I've never heard it in those places. I have heard 'Pride', 'With or Without You', 'Beautiful Day', and (most of all) 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For' numerous times, but never 'One'.

There seems to be this perception on this forum that 'One' was a huge hit on the pop charts, but it wasn't really. The single reached #10 in the USA and #7 in Britain. This means it was a very popular single, but it wasn't nearly as welcomed by the mainstream as the aforementioned songs. When compared to another 3rd single, 'One' failed to do as well in Britain as 'When Love Comes to Town' on the pop charts. Likewise, its chart peak in the United States was no better than, say, 'Discotheque'.

Historical chart stats be damned. That's such a misleading argument to suggest that One got less rotation than those latter two songs mentioned. I'll guarantee you one thing: One has been played on the radio about a bajillion times more than Discotheque or When Love Comes To Town.

And for good reason!

 

[Nick66]

Maybe this depends on where you live, but I don't think I've ever heard 'One' on the radio -- like, in my life.

Of course, I don't listen to the radio, so there's that. But I do hear radio often in restaurants, other people's cars, out on the street, etc., and in the 21 years since the song appeared I've never heard it in those places. I have heard 'Pride', 'With or Without You', 'Beautiful Day', and (most of all) 'I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For' numerous times, but never 'One'.

There seems to be this perception on this forum that 'One' was a huge hit on the pop charts, but it wasn't really. The single reached #10 in the USA and #7 in Britain. This means it was a very popular single, but it wasn't nearly as welcomed by the mainstream as the aforementioned songs. When compared to another 3rd single, 'One' failed to do as well in Britain as 'When Love Comes to Town' on the pop charts. Likewise, its chart peak in the United States was no better than, say, 'Discotheque'.

Of course, in the years since the single/EP was issued, the song has been played to death by U2 and has taken on an elevated status in rock culture.

(Still, I fail to understand why people on this forum continue to beat it up, but turn a blind eye to songs like 'Streets' which have been played even more often -- and, I would argue, more badly -- than 'One'.)

Excellent and accurate post.

Thanks for some much-needed perspective.

 

[digitize]

Discothèque peaked at number 10 on the US charts and then, after one week, vanished. It was pushed by club plays. To say that One is no more popular than Discothèque in the US is, quite honestly, ridiculous. And, in response to The Panther's anecdotal evidence, I hear One on the radio all the time (and Discothèque none of the time), although I don't think that anecdotal evidence is very useful for any argument.

I'm not a Briton so I can't speak intelligently about One's popularity in the UK, but I have a sneaking suspicion that One has left a better legacy there than WLCTT. Pop chart placement isn't everything.

Sorry, not buying it. However, I do love One, and I am also baffled by how strong of a contingency here hates it. And I agree that Streets is probably played worse nowadays too.

 

[gvox]

Ridiculous isn't the word. One still plays on adult contemporary radio in Canada and the USA, regularly. On some stations, daily even or at worst every other day. Discotechque and When Love Comes To Town are long forgotten. Even in it's prime, WLCTT was largely eclipsed on mainstream radio by Desire. Even a station playing a retro set/format, will play Desire...and, ironically, One, long before either of those two tracks.

Nipplers was in Phuket getting "massages" between 1992 and 2004, also, so that also might explain his..perspective.

 

[lemonfly]

For me, One suffers from the same condition as a lot of U2's most popular songs: they get overplayed so much that I stop seeing the genius of the song and get to the point where I'm never in the mood to hear it yet again. But once in a while, usually if one of these songs comes on the radio, I take the time to really listen and appreciate it all over again, and I "get" it. I love those moments of an unexpected U2 song for that reason.

yeah, I feel exactly the same way. Hearing One during PopMart was very special. Hearing it during Elevation was very special. But then it just seemed to suffer from overexposure. They rolled it out at every opportunity like David Blane doing a card trick. And the version with Blige poisoned some of the goodwill towards it IMHO. When they played it during 360 my reaction is 'Oh someone please hit the skip button and let's hear the next song'. I truly believe that if they retired One for a tour it will regain its regality.

 

[digitize]

Fittingly, I actually heard One on the radio this morning.

 

[Nick66]

Ug. I'm convinced that when people say "they" overplay One, referring to the radio, or U2 themselves in concert, who they're really talking about overplaying it is themselves.

Of course U2 has played it in pretty much every show on every tour since AB. So what? Complaining about One is no different than the whining about any overplayed song on the set list. How many shows do you really go to? Just hearing "One" in X number of shows has made you sick of it? Give me a break.

Same goes for the radio. Yeah, I know the song has been played on AOR stations pretty consistently for the past twenty years...but I doubt many serious U2 fans have heard it more that way then they've played it themselves. And if you were really that sick of it, you could just change the station. I promise you One was never played as much as people think it was, or is.

Help! Help! They're playing "One" again and I can't change the channel/station!!!! They're playing "One" again in concert...but I'm glued to my seat!!! Why, oh why, did U2 have to play One again when I've heard it so many times before!!! Don't they know I've been over it since PopMart!!!WHY CAN'T THEY PLAY ACROBAT OR LADY WITH THE SPINNING HEAD!!!!????

If you're sick of "One" or any U2 song, it's because you've played it to death yourself, period. You don't have to be exposed to songs that you don't want to, and certainly hearing the song live, in a different version, every few years isn't going to make you sick of it. At least if you don't have the attention span of a squirrel.

And what makes "One" so special? If you hate One because it's been "overplayed", then there's a lot of other U2 songs that have been played as much, if not more, than One, that you need to be hating based on that criteria.

Yeah, I've overplayed some U2 songs to the point where I just don't need to hear them for a while, including One. But the only person I have to blame for that is myself. And when it happens, I just stop playing those songs.

Crikey, the rubbish people around here come out with sometimes.

 

[LadySpinHead]

One could never be played enough for me. Not possible.